Love in Hiding
by batception
Summary: How can you live a normal teenage life when you're best friends with the Golden Trio, and you're in love with the enemy?
1. The Beginning of a lifetime

**Year 1, Chapter 1**

**Hey everyone! So I know people don't usually like stories about people who aren't in created by J.K. Rowling, but I think you guys will like this character. **

**Just so you know, here's a little back ground info about the main character.**

**Her name is Artemis Trimble. Her Mom is black and white, and her dad is white, but she's never met him before. She has tan skin, big light brown eyes, and thick, straight, jetblack hair that goes past her waist.**

**And of course all credit for the characters and setting go to J.K. Rowling :)**

**It's rating is K for now, but in her 5th year in up, it'll probably be rated T.**

**Ok, well thanks for reading, and please do review!**

"Mummy, I think I've changed my mind again. Maybe I'll just go to a regular school,"

"My darling Artemis," my mother bent down so her caramel colored face was level with mine. I looked into her chestnut colored eyes that were identical to mine and gave her my best puppy dog eyes. "We've been through this how many times before?"

"Too many to count," I pouted.

"That's right dear. I know you can do this. Professor Dumbledore himself sent you a letter asking you to come to his school. You have no idea how great of an honor that is!" she said cupping my face into her loving hands. "Now, I want you to go out there, and when you come back, I'll be waiting right here for you, ok?" my mum smiled sympathetically.

"Promise?"

"I promise," I threw my arms around my mum and held on tightly. She stroked my long black hair that fell a few inches below my waist.

"Your father would be so proud," she said softly. I wanted to ask what she meant by this, because I had never known my father and rarely did Mum ever talk about him, but before I could inquire further, the Hogwarts Express gave its final whistle for boarding call. I let go of her, and ran to join the hundreds of other kids, about to make the 8-hour journey to Hogwarts. Most of the kids had their heads stuck out the window, waving to their parents and siblings as the train pulled out of the station. Once we were out of sight, beginning the trip into the countryside, everyone went back to their seats.

I walked slowly down the isle, scanning for any empty seats, but most of them were already filled with groups of friends that I was too timid to barge in on. Everyone just seemed to fit in already and then there was me, the little first year girl with the long hair, small amount of money, no friends, no magic experience, and no father.

I was thinking about the best possible escape route to get myself off this train, and back to my mum, until I found a car with no one else in it, except for a girl with her nose buried deep into a book. I quietly opened the door and slipped in. The person reading looked up abruptly and I looked at her with wide apologetic eyes. The girl set her book down, and moved over so she was in front of me.

"Hi! I'm Hermione, Hermione Granger."

-Later that night-

Us first years were waiting in line in the Great Hall to be sorted into our Houses. I stood with my arms crossed, trying to give off the impression that I was cool calm and collected, but really I was quivering with anticipation. I stood there silently while Hermione Granger chattered away about what it was like to be sorted.

"Oh would you shut it already?" said a boy behind me. I turned around to glare at him. He had cold gray eyes, bleach blonde hair, and pale skin to match, "Mudbloods like you shouldn't even _get _to be sorted," he said smugly. His two friends on either side of him laughed like little minions. Hermione pursed her lips and looked at the floor so her bushy brown hair covered her blushing cheeks. Oh how I had the sudden urge to punch that stupid git in the face.

"Draco Malfoy," the teacher who was running the Sorting (Professor McGonagall was it?) called out.

"Out of my way," the blonde boy pushed his friends aside and walked between Hermione and I, stepping on my toes on his way to be sorted. "What are you staring at Rapunzel," he said when he caught me glaring.

"Nothing, Goldie Locks," I blurted out before I even realized what I had said. My fellow classmates burst into a fit of laughter. Draco narrowed his eyes at me then continued on to be sorted.

"SLYTHERIN!" the Sorting Hat said before it even touched the top of Draco's head. Draco smiled happily, and seemed to forget about being laughed at just a seconds ago. He went to sit with his fellow House members.

"Artemis Trimble," Professor McGonagall called out. Of course I _would_ be after Draco. Hermione gave me a reassuring pat on the back. I quickly made my way to the Hat and avoided looking at the entire school who had their eyes on me. In my haste, I accidentally sat on my hair, which caused my head to jerk back. I heard a few giggles, mainly from the Slytherin table, and I pulled my hair out from under me and wished that this could be over already.

"Hmm, Trimble is it?" The ancient Sorting hat said once it was on my head. "You don't seem like a Trimble… You've got intelligence and mischief in your blood like a Slytherin, but also bravery…" the hat trailed off. I closed my eyes, waiting for it to be over. "This is difficult, very difficult…but we'll go with- GRYFFINDOR," The Gryffindor table cheered, and I made a beeline to join them. Hermione was sorted to Gryffindor too and she quickly joined me as well. Finally the feast began.

"Artemis, look there's Harry Potter. I got to meet him when we were on the train today!" Hermione whispered and pointed to a mousy haired boy with the roundest glasses I had ever seen sitting two people across from us. She looked at me, awaiting my reaction. I shrugged.

"Am I supposed to know him?" I said picking at my mashed potatoes. She looked at me in disbelief.

"You don't know Harry Potter!" I shook my head. "The Boy Who Lived!" she said a little louder. The red haired boy sitting next to this 'Amazing Harry Whoever' looked up at Hermione and gave her a bewildered look. His bright blue eyes glanced at Harry, who was too busy stuffing his face. He then went back to feasting too.

"What was that about?" I muttered.

"I don't know, but I still can't believe you don't know Harry Potter!" she said his name in a whisper and proceeded to tell me the story about him. I let her talk, hardly listening, and filled my plate with more and more treats.


	2. What Have I Gotten Myself Into

Year 1 Chapter 2

It was finally Monday, the first day of classes. Hermione had insisted we get to our first class early so we could score a good spot up in front. I groaned at the thought of this, but left breakfast early to accompany her to class anyway. We were also joined by a boy named Neville Longbottom who feared getting lost to his first class.

"Oh hello Neville," Hermione smiled at the chubby boy with crooked teeth and pointed ears. Neville, whose hands were full with his pet frog in one hand and schoolbooks in the other, gave an attempt at waving. "Neville, this is Artemis, Artemis this is Neville," I smiled at him and he smiled back awkwardly.

We got to our first class, which was Potions. Hermione immediately made her way to the front.

"I heard about this class," Neville said quietly. "This is Professor Snape's class. I hear he's always wanted to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts, but Dumbledore would never let him. Serves him right," Neville looked just as nervous as I did. His frog seemed to agree too, and it escaped his grip and hopped around, knocking over beakers and cauldrons that were on every table.

"Trevor!" he clumsily tried to grab his little frog. I know I should have helped, but instead I took a seat in the back where I could hide from this Professor Snape character.

"Artemis, aren't you going to sit up here?" Hermione turned around in her seat to face me.

"No," I shook my head. I'm quite fine here,"

"Suit your self," she shrugged, and took out her Potions book. Other students began to trickle in and find seats. When Harry Potter walked in Hermione waved to him.

"Over here Harry!" she patted the seat next to her. He looked at his red haired friend named Ron Weasley, who Hermione had talked about _all_ bloody night, and they both took the desk behind Hermione. I now wished I had taken the seat next to Hermione, so I wouldn't be so alone in the back.

I lost my opportunity to move, when Neville eventually took the seat next to mine.

"Found Trevor," he said breathlessly. He held up his croaking frog towards me.

"You should put him away Neville, you don't want him to get out again," Honestly, I just didn't want him to draw any more attention to our table.

"Yeah Longbottom, put that nasty thing away. There's already enough ugly in here," said a familiar arrogant voice. I turned to see Draco Malfoy walking in. I stopped myself from retching. Him and his friends took the desk behind Neville's and mine. Great.

Was it still too late to move next to Hermione?

Suddenly the doors slammed open and Professor Snape glided in. I knew it was him because he looked as vile as Neville made him sound. The class became quiet and listened intently to his "welcoming" lecture.

"Well look who we got stuck next to for the whole year," Draco said in a hushed tone. We've got Fatbottom over here, and little Rapunzel" his friends cackled. What a great view," he pretended to gag, which sent his friends into more laughter. "Excuse me, Fatbottom? I can't see behind your overweight head." Neville pretended not to hear, and kept his eyes on Professor Snape. "Hey, I'm talking to you!" Draco kicked the cage that Trevor was in, sending him sliding across the room.

I whirled around to face Draco.

"Stop it! Just leave him alone, will you?"

"Aw, did I hurt Fatbottom's feelings?" Draco pretended to pout. Neville's face turned crimson all the way up to his ears.

"Shut up Draco! Your jokes aren't even that funny!" I said a little too loudly. Suddenly I was shadowed by a large figure. I slowly turned around to see Professor Snape looming over me.

"Not paying attention, I see," He said, his voice dripping with icy venom. "Brave, for a first year, not to mention in their very first class too," Draco laughed, and Snape silenced him with a quick look.

"But it wasn't me Professor. Draco was making fun of Neville and he kicked Trevor!-"

"And a snitch too?" He leaned over me. His black hair hung over his eyes. "Detention ."

"What!"

"Would you like to make that 10 detentions Ms. Trimble? Because surely we can make it 10,"

"No Professor,"

I shut my mouth and Professor Snape finally walked away. I slumped down in my seat. Neville gave me a sorry look, but I ignored his gaze. Draco snickered and I crossed my arms and ignored this too.

"Nice going Rapunzel,"

Finally class was over and I packed my stuff and quickly ran to the next class.


	3. Liars and Cheaters

Year 1 Chapter 3.

**One more chapter till the end of their first year.**

**I know its boring now, but review and tell me what you think? Or just don't read it, thats cool too :p**

Despite Draco's effort to get me into trouble, I managed to ignore him in all of my other classes for the rest of the term. I didn't want to risk getting more detentions, especially with Professor Snape, who made me organize his potions in his storage cabinet. I started to think he purposefully shuffled them around, so that I could slave over them for hours.

But I kicked the habit of letting Draco have the last laugh. Although that meant Neville and I had to endure crumbled up parchment being thrown at us, being called names, and having my hair pulled. Every. Single. Day. I even wore my hair in a bun for a week, so it wouldn't be pulled. This only made it worse. Draco called me "Cinnamon Buns" for the longest after that. It wasn't clever or witty, but it annoyed me, so I went back to wearing my hair down.

One day in December, just before holidays, Professor Snape gave us an in-class assignment. Whoever could conjure Polyjuice Potion the quickest and most efficiently, would receive no homework for the rest of the week.

This was a very rare opportunity, so Neville and I quickly set to work (although I did most of the potion handling). I remembered most of the ingredients that we needed from organizing them so many times in Snape's office. Within a few minutes I was done, and raised my hand proudly to announce I was done.

"Cheater," Draco said from behind me. "You're a dirty cheater, how are you done already?" Draco sneered at me. He was almost done with his own potion, but was just missing a few ingredients.

"I didn't cheat Draco," I rolled my eyes at him. "You know, I can tell you what ingredient you're missing?" I paused for dramatic effect. "But I won't." I turned back around. With that, Draco reached over and grabbed our flask and replaced his with ours. "Hey!" I yelled at him.

Professor Snape chose this time to check on our group.

"All done Professor!" Draco pointed at my flask of perfect Polyjuice potion.

Well done ," Snape said eyeing the container.

"What! That's mine Professor! Neville and I worked hard on that!" Professor Snape frowned at me. "I could use some backup Neville," I mumbled, but he sat trembling with his mouth glued shut.

"She's lying Professor," Draco scoffed.

"Naturally. Detention." he began to walk away.

"But Professor! That really is mine! Draco's the one lying!" I snatched my flask back, but Draco grabbed for it too. It slipped out of both of our hands and landed all over the front of Professor Snape's coat. The class became deathly quiet. Draco and I looked at each other then back at Snape with wide eyes. Snape waved away the sludgy brown goop with a flick of his wand, then turned to stare at me with piercing black eyes.

"50 points from Gryffindor." He growled. All of the Gryffindors in the class groaned. He brought his face close to mine. "Now I suggest you stop interrupting my class," and he turned on his heel and walked away. "Back to your potions!"

* * *

><p>"I just hate him <em>so<em> much, Hermione," I said rubbing my eyes fiercely. Hermione sat next to me on my four-poster bed. Why doesn't he ever get in trouble? _He's_ always the one who starts it! I don't do anything," and I put my face in my hands, beginning to cry again. I had just come back from my first of many detentions to come with Snape. Afterwards, I skipped dinner to hide in the confines of my room.

"Just ignore him Artemis," Hermione said softly. "He's just a great big prat, and a teacher's pet."

"Why won't he leave me alone! I didn't even do anything to him," I sniffled and wiped away my tears with the back of my sleeves.

"You know, I read that when a boy won't leave you alone like that, it means he likes you," Hermione said jokingly.

"Gross Hermione!" I couldn't help but laugh though.

"I made you laugh! Yay!" Hermione smiled.

"Yeah, well, not for long. I'm going to sleep."

"But it's only 8."

"I can't stand to be awake any longer," I got up from my bed and went to change into my pajamas.

"Ok, well see you in the morning then," Hermione headed for the stairs. She gave me one last reassuring smile, and then went down to the common room.

I hopped into bed and pulled the covers over my head. Hermione's words echoed in my head.

_…when a boy won't leave you alone like that, it means he likes you._

Disgusting.

* * *

><p>I stuck my head out of the Hogwarts Express, eagerly looking for my mum. I caught sight of her in the crowd of waving parents. She looked like she had aged a few years since the last time I had seen her, nevertheless she still looked beautiful in her floral summer dress.<p>

The train came to a complete stop and I grabbed my luggage and headed for the door. I got to the platform and at last, I was free!

"Artemis! Artemis, wait up!" Or so I thought I was. Hermione made her way through a crowd of people and was rushing towards me. She knocked me back in a tight hug and I stumbled back a few steps.

"I'll miss you too Hermione," I laughed. She stepped back and gave me a sorry look.

"Promise, you'll write me? I want to hear about _everything _you do this summer," she said excitedly.

"I promise," I looked at the rest of my friends who had tagged along with her. Harry who I had grown respect for, Ron who's facial expressions never failed to make me smile, Neville who would have had a rough year without me, and Dean and Seamus who were always there to add some fun to our group. I gave each one of them a hug and said my goodbyes. We all promised to write each other, even though I knew we wouldn't, and then we went our separate ways.

"Artemis," I was stopped again, but this time it wasn't from a friend. It was Draco. I slowly turned around. I really didn't feel like punching him in front of my mum.

I faced him and locked eyes with him. They were a cloudy gray today, and seemed troubled by the way they kept darting around. I noticed my reflection in them, They almost seemed like mirrors. I snapped out of my daydreaming and went back to glaring

"I wanted to…"

"Wanted to what?" I said shortly. He looked very uncomfortable and he looked down at his black shoes. He gulped and tried again.

"I wanted to say sorry for this year, you know for how I treated you." My eyes widened. Was Draco really apologizing to me right now? "I think that… er...we should…"

I didn't try to interrupt him this time. I stared at him, with my eyebrows raised and my mouth slightly agape, and let him finish. "I think we should start over. Next year." He added quickly. I stared at him for a moment, and then came back to reality.

"Really?" I asked in disbelief. He nodded sheepishly.

"Ah, Draco my boy!" A man in an all black suit said, coming between us. He had Draco's pale pointed face, and blonde hair, only it came down to his shoulders. He threw me a look of judgment and then began to walk the other direction. "Come Draco," He pulled Draco by the collar of his shirt and walked away. Draco looked over his shoulder and waved before turning back to his dad.

"-I think I would like that," I said to myself.

"What was that about darling?" a soft voice said. I took my eyes away from Draco's disappearing figure and looked up at my mum.

"Oh, nothing. Just this boy..." I tried to hide my smile, but my mum saw right threw me. She laughed warmly and hugged me to her side as we walked away from Platform 9 ¾


	4. It All Starts with a Spark

**Hi, thank you very much if you read this. If you do read this, continue on because its the start to the entire storyline basically! **

**I would love reviews, so tell me what you think :D **

Year 2

Oh, to be back at home. Yes, it had been a nice summer break, but I really did miss Hogwarts. Hermione had written me every week, and I would occasionally get a letter from Harry, Ron, Neville or Dean. I missed all of my friends terribly, but most of all I wanted to see Draco. I don't know what had come over me. It all started when he apologized to me at Platform 9 ¾. From then on I just couldn't stop thinking about him. There were a few times where I wanted to write him, just to ask how his summer was going, but I ended up ripping up the letter and throwing it in the rubbish pile every time.

Finally September rolled around, and my mum and I were at Kings Cross Station once more. I subconsciously searched the sea of people for a blonde head of hair, but I was too short to see over the towering heads of upperclassmen.

"Are you looking for your friends love?" Mum said, snapping me back to reality.

"Oh um, yes I-"

"Well you're not the little baby girl I dropped off here last year, now are you?" she smiled maternally. "I remember when you didn't want me to leave last year, and now you are all ready to go, huh?" I nodded impatiently. "Ok, well go find your friends then, and have fun; be safe! Write me every week-"

"Thanks Mum!" I hugged her tightly. "Love you!" I kissed her on the cheek, and then ran for the train.

* * *

><p>"-and Artemis, <em>please <em>try not to get detention on the first day won't you?" Hermione looked at me with disdain.

I sighed.

"I won't, I won't. Actually Draco and I are cool now," I said smugly. I tossed my two long pigtails behind me matter of factly.

"_What_!" she turned her shock filled face to look at me. We entered Professor Snape's class, this time not so early. Draco and his friends had already taken their usual seats in the back corner of the class. My heart skipped a beat when I saw the pale face, gray eyes, and white-blonde slicked hair. Hermione and I noticed them at the same time and glanced at each other.

I spent my whole summer imagining this very moment. Do I say hello, or do I ignore him; glare at him? I followed Hermione to the front of the class, and took a peek at Draco. He was staring back at me. I stood there, not knowing what to do until he gave me a sort of half smile. I smiled back, and casually walked to his table.

"So, are you going to try to get me into detention again Draco," I folded my arms and looked down at him.

"No, no. I would never do that Trimble," he scoffed. I leaned against his desk, and at the same time Professor Snape made his dramatic entrance.

"SIT," his deep voice boomed. Everyone scrambled back to their seats and I looked at the one saved for me way in the front with Hermione, Harry, and Ron. I didn't want to be the last one to be seated, so I glanced at the empty seat next to Crabb and groaned.

"Goyle, sit with Crabb," Draco said in a harsh whisper. Goyle shot him a look, but obeyed. "Trimble, sit here," I quickly took Goyle's seat next to Draco before Professor Snape could turn around and give me detention for being disruptive, or whatever stupid reason he could come up with.

"Thanks," I mumbled.

We were silent the rest of the time, while Professor Snape gave us his beginning of the year shpeel. I squirmed anxiously in my seat, just waiting for Hermione to turn around and see who I was sitting with.

We ended up listening to Professor Snape talk the entire time, and then reading out of our Potions for Beginners book. When class was over, everyone rushed out as fast possible with moans and groans about our first homework assignment. I packed up my things slowly, thinking of something to say to Draco. He got up and started to leave with his friends and I hesitated, still racking my brain.

"Ms. Trimble," I whipped around to see Professor Snape glaring at me from behind his greasy black hair. "Shouldn't you be getting to your next class, or would you like to watch the grass grow," he slowly dragged out his words.

"Sorry Professor," I kept my head down and scurried out the room. I stumbled back a few steps.

"Hey watch it- oh…Artemis…"

"Sorry…" I looked up to see Draco right in front of me. "Oh wait no never mind, I'm not sorry." I said jokingly. I looked into his painfully silver eyes.

"Are you _trying_ to get detention?" he said slyly.

"Oh hush. I made it through the class without getting in trouble. Now tell me where the Astronomy class is."

"Hey, that's my class too," he said eyeing me. "It's up this way," We climbed the staircase, holding on tight when it decided to move on it's own accord, and we walked to the Astronomy tower.

"I swear it was here," Draco said under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing…"

"Are you sure you know where you're going?"

"Of course I do! It's right over here," he pointed to a door and opened it. A class full of 6th years glared back at us, and he quickly closed the door.

"Draco!" I marched off in the other direction. "I swear, you are out to get me in trouble, _again_."

"I'm not, I swear!" I kept walking. "Hey, where are you going?" I turned to face him.

"This way. I remember it being over here."

"No way, it's definitely this-" I opened a door and found the right group of students staring back. I turned back to Draco to give him an I-told-you-so-look.

"Ah, Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Trimble," Professor Sinistra said from the front of the room. "So nice of you to finally join us. Seeing as you two are the last ones in, you can be partners for our back-to-school project," Draco and I glanced at each other. "Take a seat, take a seat."

We sat down in an empty table in the back and avoided everyone's stares.

"It's better than detention at least," I murmured. In truth it really was better than detention. My stomach flip-flopped when Draco's hand brushed against mine while he traced circles with his quill on the desk Had he meant to touch me? Had I just imagined it? I touched the spot where his skin touched mine.

Wait, what was I doing. He barely touched me, why was I freaking out. I didn't know, but I kind of liked this new feeling. I smiled to myself and rested my cheek in my hand so he wouldn't see me smirking.

This would be interesting.


	5. Brewing Friendship

Over the next few weeks, Draco and I had gotten into the habit of walking to each class together. Matter of fact, quite the friendship was growing between us. Hermione had gotten used to the idea that I was drifting to a new crowd, although she didn't approve, she stopped hassling me about it each day.

Today, I was to meet with Draco so we could work on our Astronomy project together. I walked down the halls after dinner nervously. Draco told me to meet him in the Slytherin common room. I had never been there, let alone been anywhere near that part of the castle before. Most people avoided it since it was by the Dungeons. I skipped down the staircase before it could change direction. Draco was waiting at the corner of the hall and I bit my lip to keep from smiling at him.

"About time," he said once I got near him.

"I've never been here before you git." I hit his shoulder jokingly, and he shoved me with his shoulder playfully. We walked to the Slytherins' dungeon wall. Draco uttered the password, and the wall opened. Draco climbed through, and I followed. The walls came together in an instant, almost shutting on my foot.

"Merlin," I breathed.

"You better watch out, Gryffindor," he laughed. I shot daggers at him with my eyes from behind him.

We got to the common room and I did a 360 as I looked around at the room. It was completely different from the Gryffindor common room; dreary, dark, and lifeless.

"Where is everyone?" realizing the room was empty except for us.

"What do you mean?"

"It's after dinner isn't it? This place is empty."

"We're not Gryffindor you know. This isn't some hang out spot. We only come here to pass through or receive letters. Seeing as you're a girl, and a _Gryffindor_ girl, I can't let you up to the rooms."

"Oh." I said quietly.

"So where do we start on this bloody project," he plopped down on the sofa and gave the Astronomy book a wary glance. I sat next to him, and pulled the book into my lap.

"We should start by reading the chapter I suppose, then go from there," I said. Draco gagged.

"It's not _that_ bad Draco." I opened the book and opened it to the first chapter. "Come on, let's get to it." He protested again, and I nudged his arm.

"Read," I commanded pointing to the book. He crossed his arms, and looked at the book. He might not have been reading, but it was a start. I couldn't blame him. I was too distracted to read too. Draco's leg was resting next to mine so that they were lightly touching. I debated on whether or not I should scoot over, but I didn't want to make it look too obvious. I turned the page, and my hand grazed his thigh. I looked at him from the corner of my eye, and he seemed to not notice anything.

I closed my eyes, and quietly inhaled to steady myself. _Relax Artemis_, I told myself, _it's just your friend Draco._ I opened my eyes and went back to reading.

Draco sighed suddenly, startling me and sending the Astronomy book tumbling.

"I'm bored." He fished through his cloak pockets and brought out two boxes of Chocolate Frogs. "Want one?" he handed me a box, and looked at me sheepishly.

"Draco! We've only just started working," I laughed.

"Fine, more for me."

"No wait!" I took the box from his hand. "I want one."

Draco smirked knowing he got his way. We both pulled open the little pentagon shaped boxes.

"I've never had one before…"

"What!" Draco looked at me like I had just told him his hair was on fire. "You've never had one before?" I nodded as I pulled out the little chocolate frog and examined it. "Well hold on to it or-" the frog suddenly wiggled to life, and hopped out of my hands. "Or that'll happen." Draco said as he bit into his own Chocolate Frog before it came to life.

"Oh no!" I got up to chase it, but it was too fast for me. It hopped to the window and squeezed itself under the window and disappeared, most likely falling to its death to the castle grounds. I sat back down miserably.

"At least I still have my card." I pulled out the card from the little box. It was Helga Hufflepuff. Nobody wanted to get Helga Hufflepuff.

"Who'd you get?" he asked, peering over my shoulder, but I stuffed it in my pocket before he could see it and make fun of me.

"No one…" I looked at him as my cheeks turned a shade of pink. Draco shrugged and took his last bite of chocolate but stopped. He turned the piece over in his hand, and then handed it to me.

"Here, take it."

I took the chocolate from his hand hesitantly.

"Go on, you didn't get any and you got a shabby card. It's the least I could do," he said with another smirk.

"Who's card did you get then?" I asked. Draco grabbed for his box, but I was quicker. I pulled out the card with one hand, and pushed Draco away with the other as he tried to take his card back.

"_Fulbert the Fearful_," I read. "_Famous for being so cowardly to even leave his own house. Died when a defensive charm backfired and his roof caved in._ Very nice Draco," I giggled.

"Oh shut up!" he snatched the card back. "Let's just get back to homework." I rolled my eyes at him and pulled the book back onto my lap.

"Artemis? What are _you_ doing here?" Crabb and Goyle both walked in, sneering at me. Draco and I both looked up from our work.

"I'm just doing homework, is that against the law?"

"No Gryffindors allowed."

"Yeah Draco, tell your girlfriend to leave," Crabb chuckled. Draco shot up from his chair.

"WHAT? Artemis is _not_ my girlfriend," I pretended to work on my homework, with the tiniest bit of hurt feelings. Crabb and Goyle stopped laughing immediately. Draco looked at me, then back to his friends. "Besides, you all know its Pansy I fancy," Draco said lowering his voice. My heart sunk as soon as her name escaped his lips. Did he really just say Pansy? Or was I just imagining it? If she was so great, then why wasn't she here with Draco helping him with homework? Why wasn't she spending every moment between classes with him? Oh that's right, because I was.

I closed my Astronomy book and packed my things while the boys talked about Pansy and Draco.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Draco said, finally noticing I was leaving.

"No Gryffindors allowed remember?" I said sarcastically.

"No, wait- I er…still need your help with the Astronomy assignment!" Draco looked up at me.

"Rules are rules though," I said smugly, and then I walked out of the common room.

* * *

><p>"So, what's this about Pansy Parkinson then?" I said poking Draco's side. He glared at me. We stepped out of the castle and into the chilly morning air as we walked to Herbology together.<p>

"Its…nothing really."

"Oh come on, just tell her you like her."

"Well its not that, I could have her if I want. In fact I could have any girl I want!" I raised my eyebrows at him. "Well anyways, you shouldn't be talking."

"What do you mean?"

"Well _I_ heard you fancy Dean Thomas."

"What?" he nodded his head smugly. I stopped walking and stared at him open mouthed.

"Who gave you that idea?"

We walked into the greenhouse just then and to prove his point Dean and Seamus turned around and waved. Dean pointed to a seat next to him. I pretended like I hadn't seen him, and sat in the chair nearest the door. Draco laughed, and took a seat next to me.

"Looks like you have _two_ lovers,"

"Oh shut up," I rolled my eyes at him. "It's the other way around, and you know it,"

"You should go out with him," he snickered.

"Ugh, he's like my brother though. It'd be like going out with you," we both looked at each other and suppressed a laugh. My heart thumped nervously at the thought of going out with Draco. Holding his hand, holding on to him, bragging to all of the other girls in Gryffindor _and_ Slytherin…

"Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Trimble, do you mind?" we both looked up and saw Professor Sprout glaring at us. Draco gave her a threatening look, and I looked down at my feet.

"Sorry Professor Sprout."

Once she turned back around Draco scooted closer to me and lowered his voice.

"If you go out with him, I'll ask out Pansy."

"Are you mad!" I said harshly.

"Come on, it'll be funny-"

"Yeah, for you!"

"Come on, please?"

"Fine, just for the week," I narrowed my eyes at him. He held out his hand and we shook hands to make it official.

"Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Trimble, must I ask you once more?" Professor Sprout said with her pudgy hand on her hip.

"I think we need to move seats so we don't talk," Draco grinned.

"Wonderful idea, Trimble, please move to the empty seat next to Mr. Thomas."

I stuck my tongue out at Draco before moving next to Dean. I smiled at Dean once I got there and he chuckled.

"Can't keep out of trouble eh?" he whispered.

"I guess not," I turned around to look at Draco who was trying not to laugh. I made a face at him, and then turned back to the front.

* * *

><p>"Well?"<p>

"Well what?"

"Did you ask her out?"

Draco rolled his eyes.

"Yep. Did Dean ask you out?"

"Yep…" we stood next to each other awkwardly. "Well aren't you happy?"

"Oh, there you are Drakey!" as if on cue, Pansy came prancing out of the Great Hall and wrapped her arms around him. He stiffened.

"Hey…Pansy,"

"Why are you with _her_?" she tried to say quietly in his ear, but I still heard her clearly. "Come on, let's go to the Common room," she dragged him away and gave me a disgusted look before leaving.

I was standing there by myself staring at them leaving until Hermione and Ron came out of the Great Hall.

"Artemis?" I turned around. "When were you going to tell me?" Hermione frowned at me.

"Umm-"

"I thought I was your best friend!"

"Malfoy's her new best friend, remember?" Ron said with pursed lips. He hadn't been fond of me ever since I became friends with Draco, his and Harry's enemy.

"Oh shut it Ron. Well, er congratulations?" Hermione attempted a smile.

"Thanks, but it wasn't really my choice…Draco sort of forced me, see we have this bet-"

"Oh, so you're just going out with Dean for a good laugh with Malfoy, are you?" Ron said venomously. "I'll see you later Hermione, I've got homework to do." With that he shrugged past us and headed to the Dormitory. I looked away sheepishly.

"Oh Artemis," Hermione sighed and followed Ron. Dean and Seamus were coming my way now, and I wanted to go joke around with them, but I realized Dean was technically my _boyfriend _now and I had to go hug him or something. Things wouldn't be the same.

What had I gotten myself into?


	6. Sealed With a Kiss

**Year 2**

**Just a forewarning, the chapters are going to get a little bit longer.**

**And thank you for the reviews so far, I would love more! I really want to know what you guys think about it. Alright thanks :)**

I was sitting out underneath a fig tree near the courtyard, doing a book report for Herbology, when I saw Draco slinking by, hair tousled, and tie esque.

"Err, Draco?" I called out to him. He caught sight of me, and quickly jogged over to me. He crouched down next to me, panting. "What's up with you?" I asked eyeing his situation.

"Pansy, she won't leave me alone," he said quickly. I knitted my eyebrows questioningly. "She's acting like we're married!" I suppressed a laugh. I pulled out my wand and did a quick tidying up spell on him that I remembered from Charms class. Draco put a hand on his neat, slicked back hair and frowned.

"It's not funny! She tried to snog me 3 bloody times today!" he sat down cross legged next to me and put his head in his hands.

"Well, she's your girlfriend isn't she?"

"Yeah but-"

"And this was _your_ bet,"

"Not fair! I don't see you snogging Dean."

"That's besides the point! I don't even really like him remember?"

"So, you still have to." He said defensively.

"Just snog her, you don't have anything to lose." I picked up my quill again and began scribbling away at my homework, trying to hide the jealousy in my face. It was perfectly fine if he snogged her. What did I care…

"I don't er, I don't really-"

"Merlin, have you ever snogged _anyone_ before?" I looked up at him, a smile creeping onto my face.

"Errr…well…."

"You haven't! Brilliant!" I laughed.

"Shut up! So what…it doesn't matter," he tried to scowl, but his reddening face gave away his embarrassment.

"It's ok, I haven't either."

"Really?" he looked at me, with a glimmer of relief. I nodded reassuringly. "Well that makes me feel _loads_ better," he said sarcastically. I gave him a friendly punch to the shoulder. "So…what am I going to do? I can't have her telling all of Slytherin that I'm a horrid kisser."

I bit my lip, and debated between telling him that he shouldn't kiss her at all, or to give him very bad advice. But wait, I had a better idea.

"Well it's really not that hard Draco, I see older kids do it all the time." He looked up hopefully." You just lean in, close your eyes, pucker your lips and-" at that I leaned in towards him on all fours and put my lips to his. His lips were quite soft, even if they weren't expecting mine to greet them. His eyes widened in shock, and I pulled back quickly. Draco's face was beginning to turn pink, and I could feel the heat creeping into my own face.

"S-sorry…I-" I tried to apologize, but MERLIN'S BEARD, I had just kissed Draco Malfoy! My heart was beating a million miles a minute. Draco's hands absently touched his lips. He cleared his throat and regained his composure.

"So that-that's all it is then?" he said getting up. I nodded slowly. "Ok, well I'll-I'll see you in class tomorrow." And with that he dashed back inside the castle. I slumped against the tree. Great, had I just ruined our friendship?

* * *

><p>The next morning I walked to Potions with Dean, my emotions running amuck. Tomorrow was the day I was supposed to break up with him, to ruin another friendship. Not only that, but I had to face Draco after our little kiss.<p>

"Artemis, did you hear me?" The tall boy looked down at me with a worried expression.

"No, er sorry, what was that?"

"I said are you feeling ok? You've been kind of quiet this morning.

"Yeah, I'm fine…I'm just tired." I smiled meekly at him as we walked in the class and went to our separate seats. Draco was already at our table, and my stomach flip-flopped. I inhaled, and took my seat next to him.

"Hello," I said quietly. He turned his head and nodded hello. So we were still on awkward terms, were we? " Draco about yesterday-"

"I broke up with her."

"You what?" I blinked a couple of times, trying to make sense of his words.

"I broke up with her. I realized I don't really like her, and I couldn't take it anymore."

"So…that means I won then?" I smiled happily. He pursed his lips and looked away.

"I guess. So you can break up with Thomas anytime now." His eyes darted towards Dean and Seamus on the other side of the class.

"Well I never thought of how I was going to break up with him…"

"Here, I'll help." Draco took out a sheet of parchment and a quill. I looked at him with confusion. "Write him a note saying you're too young to have a boyfriend, and that you think there's someone else out there who likes him or something. Oh! And that you only want to be his friend." I looked at him in awe. Before I could say anything, Professor Snape walked in and the class instantly hushed. Draco slid the parchment and quill over to me.

_Dear Dean,_ I wrote. _ There's something I have been meaning to tell you. As much as I find you cute and funny, _Draco pretended to gag as he read this over my shoulder. I shrugged him off. _I think we should be friends only. We've had some great times together as friends, and I don't really want to ruin this by going out with you. Plus, I'm only 12, my mom would never approve of a boyfriend._ Draco chuckled. _Ok, well I hope you understand, and that we can still be good friends. _

_ -Artemis_

I passed the letter over to Draco so he could read it over.

"Merlin, your handwriting is terrible." I frowned at him. We folded the letter up and sealed it with Spellotape. "Can I give it to him at our Quidditch scrimmage today? I want to see the look on his face!" I snatched the letter back.

"No way! I'll have Hermione give it to him after class or something." Draco crossed his arms and sat back in his chair as Snape walked down our row of desks.

* * *

><p>"I gave it to him," Hermione said as she got into her bed.<p>

"What did he say?" I asked hesitantly.

"He's ok, but…"

"But…"

"He thinks it's because you like Malfoy." Hermione gave me a wary glance. I slumped down in my bed and pulled the covers over my head.

"Well…do you?" Ginny, the little ginger girl who shared a room with us, asked from her bed.

I peeked over the covers so that they could only see my eyes and blushing cheeks.

"You do! You do!" They both said.

"I knew you _always _did!" Hermione said, smiling matter of factly at me. "Oh, _why_ did it have to be the bad boy Artemis?"

"Yeah, Ron told me you guys hated each other last year." Ginny said.

"We did, but… well I don't really know what happened."

"Malfoy stole my best friend, that's what happened." Hermione said.

"Hermione, you know you'll always be my best friend." She smiled appreciatively. "You want to know something else?" I sat up and glanced at the open door. "_Muffliato_." I said, which made it so nobody could eavesdrop. Hermione perked up, and Ginny put down her black diary she had been writing in. "Yesterday, Draco and I…well, we kissed."

"WHAT!" they both exclaimed. I nodded and told them the story, buffing up a few details here and there. We stayed up gossiping and laughing way past lights out. Finally at about 1:30 am Hermione reminded us about the big Quidditch match that was tomorrow morning so we finally put out the light coming from our wands, and went to sleep.

* * *

><p>It was the morning of the Quidditch game, the game that decided who would be playing each other for the House cup. I was sitting in the Great Hall taking a sip of my hot chocolate. It was snowing outside, which only added to the agitation of the two teams.<p>

I sat between Harry and Hermione, and across from Fred and George; Ron and Ginny's older brothers. Hermione, Ginny, and especially Ron, were all eating heartily, while the 3 other Gryffindor players picked at their food. I looked down the table to see Oliver Wood, the captain of the team, with nothing but a cup of coffee in hand. The wave of anxiety the team was giving off got to me, and eventually I put down my hot chocolate and blueberry muffin.

" Oh, really boys, you have to eat _something_." Hermione said putting down her copy of the _Daily Prophet_ to look at them.

"Granger, do you know how important this game is?" said one of the twins.

"If we lose to Slytherin-"

"Then we'll be out of the House Cup." My head swiveled back and forth between the identical twins as they finished each other's sentences.

"At least the whole game doesn't depend on you." Harry mumbled.

"It wouldn't be so bad, you know, if Malfoy hadn't bribed the whole team with new brooms." My ears perked up at his name.

"That's just foul play. That little prat shouldn't even be on the team." One of the twins glanced over his shoulder to glare at Draco. All eyes flickered towards me then back to their food. Fred and George exchanged a glance.

"You're the Malfoy girl, aren't you?"

"What?" I asked looking up at them.

"The one that's been spending all the time with the enemy."

"The enemy? He's not an enemy!" The group around me exchanged skeptical looks. I remembered hearing rumors about him being the "Heir of Slytherin", but I always ignored the silly rumors and snide remarks about him. "I'll have you know he's a great Quidditch player, I've seen him myself. He doesn't need to _buy _his way onto the team." I wrapped my red and gold scarf around me, and walked away before I could blow my fuse.

"Temper, temper," one of the twins said laughing behind me as I walked away.

I weaved around the Great Hall so that I could pass the Slytherin table on my way out. I found Draco's platinum blonde hair at the end of the table and leaned down next to him to whisper in his ear.

"Good luck," I kissed him on the cheek and flounced out of the Great Hall.

**How will Draco react?**

**Who will win the game?**

**How will the end of the year go for them?**

**Stay tuned!**


	7. Best friends?

**Just wanted to say thanks for those of you who read this, and I really do appreciate comments! They keep me going :)**

**Anyways, this is kind of a boring chapter but it leads to more interesting things, I promise :D**

Hermione took a nervous glance at me. I looked back at her knowingly. The sea of red and gold was cheering hysterically all around us as Harry triumphantly flew around the field with the Snitch in his hand. I couldn't help but worry over how Draco must be taking the loss. Hermione knew that I was going to do something about it, and that would cause more teasing from the Gryffindor boys.

The Slytherin team flew off the field with their heads hung in defeat. Draco was at the end, ignoring the jeers from the crowd. I watched him disappear into the Quidditch tent, and I took this as my chance.

"I'll see you in the common room…" I said to Hermione over the loud crowd. She nodded and gave me a half-hearted smile. I ran out of the stands and back into the castle.

I made my way to the top of the Astronomy tower. Whenever Draco needed to get away from everyone else, or just be alone, that's where he went. I walked down the deathly quiet hall and sat against the ledge that over looked the rest of Hogwarts. Ten minutes or so passed, and finally I heard a pair of feet shuffling up the stairs. Draco came around the corner dragging his broomstick in one hand, and his Quidditch gear in the other.

"Hello." I said quietly. He looked up, surprised at my presence, and continued to skulk over to me.

"Fancy seeing you here," he mumbled. Draco dropped his belongings on the ground and slumped against the wall.

"I just wanted to make sure you're ok…" I started to wonder if invading his privacy was a bad idea. I bit my lip apprehensively, waiting for him to shoo me away.

"No, I'm kind of glad you're here…I'm just…never mind." He sighed and looked down at his shoes.

"You can tell me Draco, I'm sure I can help you feel better."

He shook his head and continued to stare down at his shoes.

"Draco, you know you can tell me," I said softly. "It doesn't matter if we're in different houses." He remained silent for a few more moments, and then finally opened his mouth in search of the right words.

"Potter made me look like a fool out there, and now it's my fault that we're not in the House Cup." The words quickly tumbled out of his mouth. He glanced up at me, and then back down to his shoes. "Flint is going to kill me." He mumbled. I put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Flint's not going to kill you," his eyes came to meet mine. "He might rough you up for a week or two, but he'll get over it." I joked. He rolled his eyes, but smiled.

"Well it also doesn't help that everyone thinks I'm only on the team because I bought my way in." he crossed his arms and looked away once more.

"But it doesn't matter what _they_ think. We all know you're a brilliant seeker. You wouldn't have made it to the semi-finals if you weren't." He looked as if he still didn't believe me, so I pulled him into a hug. He stiffened, but finally relaxed and put his arms around me.

"Artemis?" he asked quietly in my ear.

"Yeah?"

"Why did you kiss me today? And that other day?" His question caught me off guard and my eyes widened (luckily he couldn't see). I pulled away from him so he wouldn't feel my rapid heartbeat.

" Well…" I bit my lip thoughtfully. Why did I kiss him exactly? Should I tell him it was because I kinda' sorta had a crush on him? "I don't know. I, er, just wanted to wish you good luck." I mentally kicked myself.

"Oh." He muttered. He shoved his hands in his pockets and turned the slightest shade of pink. "Well, what if I told you that I wanted to kiss you…right now."

The butterflies in my stomach were going crazy right now. My cheeks began to flush, my palms were sweaty and shaking; I was a mess.

"I would probably say that I would really…_really_ like that."

"In that case…" Draco said taking a step towards me. He puckered his lips and leaned in to press them against mine. My eyes widened in shock. I was almost too stunned to revel in the fact that this time Draco was the one kissing me. My body tingled all over, and I liked the feeling of kissing him. He stepped back and looked around awkwardly. I cleared my throat and tried to gain control over my breathing. Neither of us obviously had no idea what to say. We finally made eye contact and broke out into a fit of laughter.

"We could keep this our little secret?" He said as one side of his mouth curved up into a smile.

"I think I'd like that." I smiled back and leaned in to kiss him once more.

* * *

><p>School was coming to an end just as things were going good for me. Draco and I had made it a habit to spend even more of our free time together and secretly kiss each other goodbye every day after we walked out of the Great Hall from dinner. We saw it as a fun little secret that we kept from the rest of our classmates. Not even Hermione knew about it.<p>

Every day I looked forward to that parting kiss. Every night I played back our kiss and smiled to myself about how much of a rebel I was for doing something so secretive and risky. In the back of my mind I knew that we only had a few more weeks left at Hogwarts until the summer holidays. We would both come back as _teenagers._ Would Draco forget about our little kissing habits next year? I really hoped he wouldn't, as a matter of fact I even hoped for a step in our "relationship".

This thought bounced back in forth in my head as I walked to breakfast with Hermione. She was chattering away about finals while I thought about Draco.

Hermione and I headed towards the Gryffindor table, and I sat down in between Seamus and Harry. Hermione sat across from me next to Ron and Neville. I caught sight of Draco at the Slytherin table, and he winked in my direction. I hid my smile and began reaching for my breakfast. Just as I began reaching for my toast, a letter dropped into my lap. I picked it up and looked at the label. It was from my mum. I opened it with a swipe of my finger and began reading.

_Dearest Artemis,_

_ I hope the end of term is going well for you. How are you doing in your classes? Hopefully you're busy studying for finals. Is everything ok with Hermione? I haven't heard much about her in your letters. And the Malfoy boy, how is he?_

_ Yes, well I have some interesting news for you. A company in America has asked me to work for them for Muggle communications, and I said yes! So I'm moving out there in a few weeks. I will be gone for the summer unfortunately, so while I am gone you will be staying with the Weasley family. Molly, Ron's mum, used to baby-sit me when I was younger than you! Can you believe it? What a coincidence that you're in the same year as Ron, and that you share a room with Ginny. _

_ Well my darling, I'm sorry that I can't see you this summer. Traveling between countries is very expensive, or I would have you come with me in a heartbeat. I will be back by the Christmas holidays next year, so we will spend every moment together, ok my dear? _

_ Stay out of trouble, and write me every week._

_ Love, _

_ Mum xx_

_Ps. What would you like for your birthday? _

The letter from my mum cascaded from my hands. I wouldn't be able to see my mum for 7 more months. I only got to see her for 2 months out of the year as it was. I could feel Hermione's gaze on me, but I didn't want to explain what the letter said for fear of crying.

"What is it Arty?" she asked anyways. I blinked quickly and hoped they couldn't tell my eyes were glassy.

"Err, well actually-" I turned to look at Ron. "I'm staying with you for the summer."

"What?" he said almost spitting out his cereal.

"Really!" Ginny looked over at me from across the table. She and I had grown fond of each other throughout the year, and she was like my little sister now.

"Yeah, I guess my mum is going to America for the summer, and so I need a place to stay. Mum said that your mum used to baby-sit _my _mum when she was little," I chuckled.

"Well then, welcome to the family," Ron said raising his spoon towards me then putting it back into his mouth.

"What's this we hear about another sibling?" the Weasley twins came up behind Ron and Hermione and squeezed themselves in between the two. They both grabbed a handful of food and began piling it onto their plates.

"This guy right here is staying at your house all summer." I said pointing to myself. They both exchanged a mischievous glance and then turned back to me.

"Oh yeah, Mum wrote us a letter saying we had to be nice to you." Fred said (I knew it was Fred because his sweater had the letter F knitted into it) "Doubt that'll happen though."

"Yeah, you'll be like the new Ginny." George chuckled.

"We're going to pull so many pranks on you-"

"You'll want to leave the second you get there!"

"Oh shut it you two!" Ginny said coming behind them and swatting them both on the head. "Don't listen to them Artemis, they're not really the scary big brother type." She put her hands on her hips and glared at them. "_I'm_ happy you're staying with us. It's going to be like a sleepover every night! We can stay up late, and paint our nails, and talk about boys, and-"

"Gross! Stop! Stop!" Fred and George said, covering their ears. Ron looked disgusted as well, and Hermione giggled with amusement.

"Don't worry boys, you'll want to leave the second we start putting makeup on you in your sleep." I said as I grinned at them.

"Oh it's on." George narrowed his eyes at me. We all laughed at the thought of the intense prank war that was bound to go on all throughout the summer.

Even though I wouldn't be seeing my mum this summer, I had a feeling that everything would still turn out to be just fine.

* * *

><p>"Off to the Burrow we go," Ron said as we made our way off the Hogwarts Express. We had said all our goodbyes to our friends and I was officially about to start my Weasley summer.<p>

"Wait can I go say bye to someone?" I asked him sheepishly. He rolled his eyes at me and sighed.

"Fine, fine." He mumbled, along with some other unintelligible things. "Just hurry."

I pushed through the crowd of people in search of Draco. Finally I found him standing next to a house elf who was gathering all of his luggage.

"Draco!" I called out to him. His eyes instantly found me.

"I almost thought you were going to forget about me." He smirked.

"Why in Merlin's name would I forget about my best friend?" I smiled at him. There was an awkward silence. His house elf was waiting a few feet behind him, impatiently tapping his foot.

"Well, the Weasleys are waiting for me…"

"I still can't believe you're staying with the _Weasels_ all summer." He sneered. I shrugged off his comment and took a step towards him.

"Promise you'll write me?" I looked up at him through my eyelashes. He looked at me skeptically. "I'll need someone to tell all my Weasley adventures to." I joked. He couldn't help but smile.

"Oh I'll be _sure_ to write you then." He said sarcastically. His house elf cleared his throat and Draco shot him a look. "I guess I better get going."

I closed the gap between us and hugged him. He wrapped his arms around me tightly. When we pulled apart I looked at him, half expecting him to kiss me, but instead he stepped back and began to walk away. With one last wave, him and his house elf were sucked back into the crowd.

"Bye… I hope you have a nice summer." I said even though he couldn't hear me. I was stupid for thinking he was going to kiss me right there in front of everyone. I shook my head, ridding myself of all the false hopes, and went back to find the Weasleys.

I had to stop thinking Draco and I were going to become more or I would end up seriously hurt.


	8. Weasley Summer

**First off I would like to say that yes I know I used some of the Chamber of Secrets plot here even though it doesn't belong. It's my story, so I do what I want. XD lolj, no but yeah just letting you know before you all get flustered.**

**and I'm kind of iffy about this chapter, but hey whatever. Let me know what you think?**

**I really do appreciate it a lot!**

**If people start reviewing it more maybe I'll get some motivation to actually write some quality chapters haha.**

**Oh and I decided this story is going to be seperated into 2 seperate stories. So this first story will probably at the end of year 4.**

The Burrow was a modest, crowded, little home. It was smack dab in the middle of a large cornfield. In all, there were 8 of us in the house, not to mention Ron's pet rat, Scabbers, and the Weasley family's owl, Pigwidgeon. I had always been an only child, so this whole "big happy family" thing was new to me.

"Come on Arty! I'll show you my room!" Ginny said excitedly as soon as we got to the Burrow. I followed her up the stairs, dodging past Ron and the twins.

"Oh sure Gin, go ahead and steal my friend." Ron called out.

"Too bad Ron," Ginny called out down the staircase. "She's mine now!" Ginny giggled. She took my arm and led me to her little bedroom at the end of the hall. I had gotten even closer to her after the whole "incident" with Voldemort. Hermione, and her brothers of course, had become a lot more protective over her, and now we were all pretty much inseperable.

My trunk had already been brought up and was sitting at the foot of Ginny's bed. There was a pull out bed connected to it where I was supposed to sleep. Ginny flopped onto her bed and propped her feet up.

"Well, this is my room-" Just then Fred and George burst through the door and plopped down next to Ginny.

"So what shall we do first Georgie?"

"Ooh we could paint our nails, doesn't that sound lovely?"

"No, lets talk about _boys_."

"Oh how about that Harry boy, I've always fancied him."

"Oh no, Fred, it's all about the _Malfoy_ boy. He is just a big hunk of-"

"OUT!" Ginny yelled at them. The twins exchanged a look and began to laugh. I could feel my face getting hot. Oh dear, would they keep embarrassing me like this all summer?

* * *

><p>It was now late July and the Weasleys were like my second family now. It was like I was a just another little sister. I even took to calling Mr. and Mrs. Weasley Mum and Dad after it accidently slipped out one day. Even Percy, who ignored me in the beginning, started to take a liking to me.<p>

Today was one of those extremely hot days. I noticed that it was not a good day to be at the Weasley house on a hot day. 8 hot bodies packed so close together with nothing to do, meant annoyance and people pushing each other's buttons.

"Ron, will you get off me already? You're nearly suffocating me." Ginny said as she pushed Ron away with her shoulder. We were all strewn around the living room; Fred was laying on the carpet George were laying under the coffee table, I was sitting on the window ledge, and Ron and Ginny were sitting on the couch. My hair was piled into a messy bun on my head because it was just way too long to have it sticking to my neck. It was too hot to move, too hot to be outside, and too hot to be around other heat producing objects.

"Well go sit somewhere else then."

"I was here first, and if you don't mind I would like to put my feet up."

"You're mental!"

"GINEVRA-RONALD STOP ARGUING THIS INSTANT." Molly came rushing in with her wand in one hand, and a cooking pan in the other. Her red bangs clung to her forehead and her cheeks were flushed. "Keep it up and I'll throw you all out!" They all groaned. Molly disappeared back into the kitchen.

"Get off the couch Ginny, I let you have the entire couch to yourself this morning."

"Well it wasn't hot then-"

"Will both of you shut up and just scoot away from each other?" George huffed.

"Well tell the _couch-hog_ to move away from me because it's too bloody hot for two people on the-"

"OUT!" Molly screamed as she marched back into the sitting room. "How do you expect me to cook a decent meal for your father and his ministry coworkers with all of your shouting and arguing?" she gave the boys a vicious look.

"But mum-" She instantly silenced them by putting her hand on her hip and giving them a stern look. She meant business. The twins rolled off the floor and trudged out the door followed by a flustered Ron, an annoyed Ginny, and then I dragged along behind them.

"Great job Ron." Fred said, smacking Ron up side the head.

"Oh shut it."

"Now what are we going to do?" George groaned.

"Where's Percy? Let's ask him to take us to go get ice cream." Ron suggested.

"He's with Dad at the ministry event or whatever." said Fred.

"What about the lake? We could go for a swim." I piped in.

"That's like a 30 minute walk though." Ron groaned.

"I bet you if we run we could get there sooner."

"Brilliant thinking Arty." George said with a smile. Fred mirrored his smile.

"I sure could go for a swim."

"-yeah if we don't pass out by the time we get there." Ron looked at all us like we were lunatics.

"Why are you such a sourpuss today Ron!" Ginny rolled her eyes at him.

"I am not a sourpuss!"

"Well let's go then!" Fred said. We all quietly crept back into the house to change into our swimsuits. Once we were back outside, we all stood in a line and Fred stood in front of us.

"Alright everyone, I want a clean race. No cheating, no magic, no being a sourpuss." We all giggled and glanced at Ron who had his arms folded across his chest. Fred got in line next to George.

"On your mark…get set. GO!" and with that we all took off. Fred and George were in the lead, obviously since they were Quidditch players and they were super fit. Ginny was right on their tail, and then there was me and Ron. A few minutes went by and Ron had gradually slowed down to a walk. I turned around and giggled at his flushed cheeks and sweaty face.

"Come on Ron! We'll never get there in time by walking."

"I'll die before I even get there. Go on without me." I shrugged and ran to catch up with the other 3. Eventually we all got there at our own pace. We were all exhausted and hot, but it was worth it once I dipped my foot in the lake and felt the icy water.

"Oooh, its perfect." I said to the others.

"After you then." George said urging me to jump in first.

"No after you big brother." I said backing away from him.

"Oh no I _insist, _go on_._" George began to creep towards me. I backed right into Fred and when I looked up at him and he was smiling down at me menacingly. The two looked at each other and then quickly grabbed me by my arms and legs.

"Fred! George! Noo!" I half laughed half screamed.

"One…two…three!" and before I knew it I was in the lake.

"Oh you two are gonna' get it!" I yelled. They both jumped, more like canon balled, in right after me. Ginny jumped in after, and Ron eased himself in. We spent the rest of the afternoon in the lake without a care in the world. We played chicken, had water fights, and took turns being thrown in by Fred and George.

The sun was low in the sky and the heat had eventually worn off. The five of us were out on the shore drying off.

"What time do you reckon it is?" Ron asked running his hands through his wet hair.

"I don't know, but Mum is sure to kill us if we miss dinner with Dad's ministry friends." Fred said.

"She's going to kill us anyways for not telling her where we were going." George said. We all realized this was true, so we broke out into a sprint.

We made it in time (with the help of George giving me a piggy back ride, and Fred giving Ginny a piggy back ride). We strode in through the back door, and made our way up the stairs before Molly could see us.

"WHERE _HAVE_ YOU BEEN ALL DAY?" We were busted.

* * *

><p>Yes, we were punished for sneaking out to the lake, even me (but I got the least of the heat). We were stuck with boring chores for days. It was stupid chores too, like degnoming and weeding out the garden, sweeping the broom shed, and other unnecessary things. It was mid-August by the time we were finally off punishment.<p>

* * *

><p>It was around 11 at night when I heard the door to our room open and close and footsteps pitter patter across the floor. I opened my eyes and squinted in the darkness to see who it was.<p>

"Who's there?" I whispered.

"Its me, are you awake." That was George. I could tell because I could finally differentiate the two twins perfectly, and what other idiot would ask me if I'm awake when I was obviously talking.

"Yes…why?" His bright red hair popped up in front me and I blinked a few times.

"Wanna' go on a little adventure?" I could see his flash of bright teeth even in the dark.

"What kind of adventure?"

"Fred, Ron, and I are going to take Dad's car and go get Harry."

"_You_ are taking Dad's car? Have you boys completely lost it?"

"It'll be fun! And how else are we going to save Harry. The poor bloke is suffering with his aunt and uncle."

"We only just got off punishment today though."

"We're not going to get caught. Mum's been busy all day with planning for Ginny's birthday; she'll be sound asleep."

"Well I'm tired and I'm not going to get in trouble again. Sorry George."

"Fine suit yourself." He got up and tip toed out the door. Boy, were they going to get in trouble the next day.

The next day I was up at around 6 since I went to sleep early. Ginny was still asleep, so I went downstairs to see if breakfast was ready yet. Molly was sitting on the couch reading the Daily Prophet. She looked up when I walked in.

"Artemis dear, have you seen the boys?" Oh they were so going to get it now.

"No, I haven't Mum." I said innocently.

"Very well then. Breakfast is on the table if you're hungry." She said coolly, and went back to her reading. I could tell she was seething with anger. I already knew this was going to be too good.

I went to the kitchen table and poured myself a glass of pumpkin juice. Just as I was sitting down, Fred, George, Ron, and Harry sauntered in.

"Where's mum?" Ron asked.

I simply shook my head at them and laughed.

"Hello Harry." I waved to Harry and he waved back. Ron rolled his eyes and the boys snuck through the kitchen and headed for the stairs.

"And where do you think you 3 are going!" The boys froze in their tracks. "Hello Harry." Molly smiled sweetly at him, then turned her rage back onto the twins and Ron. "Honestly boys I was worried SICK over you!"

And it went like this for the rest of the morning. It was great.

Later on in the day Pigwidgeon came soaring through the kitchen and dropped a stack of letters on the table, each one addressed to us. We all took our letters and opened them up. It was our list of books and other supplies we needed for the year.

Mrs. Weasley peered over Harry's shoulder to look at the list.

"Oh is that time of year already? Well it looks like we'll all be making a little trip to Diagon Alley today."

To Diagon Alley we go.

**Oh look at that, a whole chapter without Draco! Hmmm...**


	9. The First Hogsmeade Trip

**I took some scenes from Prisoner of Azkaban, but switched up the dialogue. All credit gos to J.K. Rowling of course.**

**Alright so yeah, as usual reviews/comments/suggestions are great because they keep me going. **

**Enjoy!**

Year 3

"What! You seriously gave Harry the Marauders Map?"

"SHH!" the twins said, both clamping a hand over my mouth.

"The poor bloke needs it more than us." Fred said.

"But you guys promised you'd take me on adventures!" I said, peeling their hands away from my mouth. "How are we supposed to that without the map now?"

"Don't fret Arty." George said ruffling my hair. "We memorized the map inside and out."

"So we can still take you on late night adventures." Fred winked. I sighed and made a mental note to myself to "borrow" this _amazing_ map that the twins had confided to me about, from Harry.

Fred, George, and I were walking in the blinding white snow on our way to our first Hogsmeade trip of the year. Hermione and Ron were probably off to go meet with Harry, who now had the bloody Marauders Map. Yeah, I wasn't going to let this one go.

"We're going to go meet Lee, and the girls at the 3 Broomsticks, you coming?" Fred asked. Uh yeah-no, I'd rather not be the 7th wheel.

"No thanks, I'm going to go catch up with Hermione and Ron."

"Alright see you then." They said, and we went our separate ways. I made my way down the main road without my two 6 foot brothers on either side of me to keep me warm, and walked down to the end of the street. There I found Draco, layered in an expensive looking pea coat and matching fur hat. The side of his mouth curved into a smile when he caught sight of me, and I was smiling back without even knowing.

"Hello." I said as I walked up to him.

" 'about time. " He smirked. Oh typical Draco. "What happened? Couldn't escape the gingers fast enough?"

"Shut up." I laughed and pushed him

"So what do you want to do?" He took a step towards me and put his arm around my shoulders.

Ok, so you're probably wondering what exactly our "relationship status" is. And I don't mean _relationship _relationship. I'm talking friendship. If he liked me he would have come right out and said it by now, right? Well if kissing me last year wasn't a bold statement, then I don't know what was. But no- we are just friends; the best of friends. I don't know what it is about him. He's mean to all my friends, always teases me, and is an overconfident prat…but I like him…a lot. I've seen his sweet side and he makes me laugh and-

Ugh look at me. No look at us, his arm was around me and we looked like a couple. Sigh, my emotions are torn. What's a thirteen year old to do?

"Hmm, let's see. We should go to Honeydukes. I really want something sweet right now."

"But you've got me, I'm all the sugar you need."

"HA" I couldn't help but laugh and roll my eyes at him.

"What? I'm delicious on the outside, and just as sweet on the inside aren't I?" He held back a chuckle.

"You mean spoiled on the outside, and rotten on the inside? Then yes."

We continued bantering all the way until we got to the Honeydukes and we hurried inside to pick out our candies. I came back out with a chocolate wand, (which Draco insisted he'd pay for) and he bought a licorice wand. As we ate our candy we walked aimlessly through the village.

We were walking past the 3 Broomsticks, when of course I saw the Twins, Lee, Angelina, Katie, and Alicia sitting inside at the booth next to the window. I turned my head to the side and tried to hide my face behind my hair, but it was too late. Fred and George pounded on the glass and made faces at me in an attempt to embarrass me. I heard Draco snarl from beside me.

"Those little-"

"Just keep walking Draco, don't pay attention to them."

"Hey hey hey, lovely day to be hanging out with your friends isn't it?" I turned to see George trailing behind us, and the rest of their group laughing from inside.

"Don't even George-" I started.

"No, no, don't mind me. I just thought I'd come and enjoy this fine snowy day with my two best friends." George stepped in between Draco and I, and put an arm around our shoulders. Draco looked at him like he was nothing but scum.

"Beat it Weasel. Go back to sipping on your little Butterbeer. I'm surprised you can afford even _that_."

"Care to repeat that Malfoy?" George said taking his arms off of us, and turning to Draco to tower over him.

"You heard me. Now go back inside, surely they're expecting you to do some manual labor in return for those drinks."

"You've got a lot of nerve, you snot nose little piece of sh-"

"GEORGE!" I stepped between the two and pushed George aside. "Just don't listen to him." I said for only him to hear. "He's only trying to get on your nerves." I knew how touchy the Weasleys got about their money situation, and they could get pretty nasty when such topic came up.

"I can't believe you like him." George huffed. I gave him a warning look. "I- we're just looking out for you, ok?" he said seriously, and he turned to go back into the 3 Broomsticks. I shook my head and walked back over to Draco. Could I ever just have a group of friends that didn't try to bite each other's head off all the time.

Draco began walking when I reached him and I followed silently. We continued walking down a pine tree covered path that veered away from the main shopping center of Hogsmeade. I linked my arm through his and layed my head on his shoulder. He sighed, and layed his head ontop of mine. I hated the silence, but this was nice.

"Where are we going?" I asked finally.

"You'll see in a second." He said slyly.

"Oooh, it's a surprise?" I looked up at him and smiled and he gave me a half smile back.

We turned around a corner and Draco stopped. I followed his gaze and looked over the hills to see a tall narrow house.

"That's the Shrieking Shack." Draco said fondly. "It's said to be the most haunted house in Britain. Someday I'm going to go there and see if it's really haunted or not…" he slowly trailed off, and I turned to see why. Hermione, Ron, and Harry were walking our way. I took my head off of Draco's shoulder and removed my arm away from his.

He stared at the trio menacingly. I waved to the three of them, but they only responded with awkward nods and they continued to avoid eye contact with me. They walked away and out of sight before I had a chance to say anything to them.

"Ugh." I huffed, and turned to go sit on a nearby bench.

"What's the matter with _you_?" Draco said, coming over to stand in front of me. I put my head in my hands and looked away. He sat down next to me and nudged me. "Well?" I finally turned my head to look at him with a look that said 'don't test me boy'.

"I'm just annoyed Draco."

"Well I figured that part out. Why though?"

"Because my friends won't even look at me now because you can't go a day without insulting them!"

"I didn't even say anything to them!" he gaped.

"But you were giving them a dirty look. And the whole thing with George-"

"_Weasley._" He growled. "I cannot stand him."

"What did he ever do to you!"

"Nothing…" Liar. He hated him even more than Fred, and I knew it.

"They're like my family, and when you guys argue it tears me apart because I can't pick a side." It all rushed out so fast, I didn't even know what I was saying anymore. He pursed his lips and didn't say anything. "Just for me, could you _please_ not argue with them, at least not around me?"

"I can try. No promises though." He fought back a smile.

"I'm serious Draco. My best friends won't even talk to me like they used to-"

He leaned in to kiss me, and not just kiss, but _kiss_. Maybe it just seemed so wonderful because this was the first time he kissed me this year, but Merlin's beard it was such a step up from 2nd year kissing. There was actual feeling behind this kiss. He pulled back a few moments later and I could feel the heat and color rush into my cheeks.

"There, now are we done arguing?" He said, putting an arm around me. I giggled and nodded like a lovesick puppy. I was pretty much putty in his hands now. "Good. Now we can focus on other things." I stared at his mouth as he spoke…his perfectly straight teeth, his pink lips… This time I leaned in to kiss him and I put an arm around his neck. Wow, this was getting hot, or romantic, whichever way you want to interpret it. Just imagine best friends with raging preteen hormones, cuddled on a bench together as snow lightly falls. Yeah, that was us.

OK, so some time went by, you know of just snogging and the occasional sentence, and then we both realized it was time to head back to the castle. We got up and slowly began walking back up the path. Our hands brushed and intertwined. I had never held his hand before. This was nice, very nice.

"Thank you for showing me the Shrieking Shack." I said.

"Not that we did much looking at it." He snickered. I tried to hide my huge smile.

" So what exactly does this mean… like for you…and I…?" I said slowly.

"Us?"

"Yeah. I mean… well you know… best friends don't kiss and err…hold hands." I raised our linked hands and then dropped them back down.

"Oh." He chuckled. "Right." I stared up at him and waited for an answer. "What did you want to be?" I shrugged.

"Well I obviously really like you-"

"And I like you too…"

"And I don't think it's weird for us to be going out."

"Me neither. I've honestly always felt like you were my girlfriend." I smiled to myself.

"Really?" He nodded. This was going too perfectly.

"So then it's settled. We're boyfriend and girlfriend." He squeezed my hand. There, it was official. Wow, that was easy.

Merlin's beard, I wanted to go scream I'M DRACO MALFOY'S GIRLFRIEND at the top of a mountain, but I had to keep it cool. We walked back silently, but a good silence this time. When we reached the courtyard where our professors were doing a head count, we let go of each other's hand. The whole school didn't need to know…_yet._

* * *

><p>The rest of the week was pure bliss. Draco and I acted the same, but just a little more touchy feely. We had all our classes together, did homework together, and I went to all his Quidditch practices; we were inseperable. It was great having your best friend as your boyfriend. The funny thing is Ginny and Hermione still didn't know. I wasn't afraid of Ginny judging me but I knew she'd tell Hermione and she would be pissed at me, and then she'd tell Harry, Ron, and they'd hate me, and they'd tell the Twins, and they'd make my life hell. So it was our little secret for now.<p>

Today was Friday, and we were all outside in Care of Magical Creatures class.

I was off to the side with Draco and a few of his Slytherin friends, and Hermione, Ron, and Harry were in the front. Hermione threw me friendly glances, but that was about it. At one point she looked back at me excitedly to see if I was watching Harry greet Hagrid's Hippogriff, Buckbeak. I think Draco was watching us because he sighed dramatically.

I looked up at him questioningly.

"You two think _that's_ great? Anybody can do that." He walked up to the front of the crowd of students and pushed Harry aside. "Out of my way Potter. Think you're so special because you can pet it, don't you?"

"Malfoy, whaddya' think yer doin!" Hagrid yelled, but it was too late. My hand covered my mouth as I watched Buckbeak rear up and come down on Draco. There were a few screams along with the screech of Buckbeak who was probably very flustered.

"Draco!" I yelled, rushing up to him. Hagrid got control over Buckbeak, and lead him off to the side with the help of some appetizing dead weasels. "Are you alright?" I leaned down next to him. His sleeve was slashed open and a there was a trickle of blood running from a couple of scratches.

. "Oh, it's killed me! It's killed me!" I rolled my eyes. I knew he was being dramatic just for show.

"You're fine, you're fine." I cooed. "Hagrid, do something!" I turned over my shoulder to look up at Hagrid.

"Err right, right." Hagrid scooped him up in his huge arms, and carried him off. "Class dismissed!" and with that they went off, and I could hear Draco yelling things like "Bloody chicken!" and "My father will hear about this!"

I stood up and went back to gather my books (and also trying to eavesdrop on what people were saying about the incident)

"Will he be ok?" Hermione asked. Oh, so we were talking now? She did look genuinely concerned though.

"Yeah, it's just a scratch. He should be fine."

"I'll walk you to the Hospital Wing to go see him after dinner if you want."

"Sure." I smiled that best friend smile at her. So did this mean we're on good terms again or…

**Yay! So tell me what you think. Or is it just that boring? Trust me, it'll get super interesting as they all mature.**


	10. Shrieking Shack

This is the longest chapter yet. :D It also contains a lot of POA scenes, so just letting you know I changed them up a bit. I hope you enjoy it!

The next day we were back in Care of Magical Creatures, only Draco would no longer be coming to this class. Sigh.

I stood awkwardly behind Hermione, Harry, and Ron, wanting to fit in with their group again. Hagrid had had just assigned a partner project which made it even more awkward. Normally, it'd be a given that Draco and I would be partners, but now I didn't know what to do.

Hermione already had her arm linked with Harry's, meaning she obviously had claimed him. I looked at Ron, and he looked at me. I guess he could be my partner. He wasn't all too smart, but he'd have to do since Dean and Seamus were already partners, and even Neville had found a decent partner.

"Partner?"

"Sure." Ron looked over at Hermione and gave her a nasty look. She returned it with an equally icy glare and turned on her heel away from us.

"What's _her_ problem?" I asked.

"The problem is that _her_ cat ate _my _rat!" She wheeled around quickly to face us again.

"Did not Ronald!" Her face was a feisty red. "Crookshanks would never do that!"

"Then explain to me where my rat is eh?"

"How should I know!"

"BECAUSE YOUR BLOODY CAT IS A WILD ANIMAL-"

"Oi, what's all the yellin' abou'?" Hagrid lumbered over to intervene.

"Hermione's cat ate Scabbers Hagrid, and she won't admit it. I mean it's completely obvious."

"It is not." She crossed her arms across her chest and faced away. "Ronald just doesn't take proper care of his pets."

"Scabbers you say? Big ol' rat that's missin' a toe?"

"Yeah that's him! You've seen him?"

"You bet I have. I caught the little bugger scurryin' around yesterday after the incident. C'mon, I'll take ya' to him." Ron followed Hagrid back to his hut, and Harry and Hermione trailed behind.

"I do think you owe me an apology." Hermione said to Ron. Those two, I swear. They'll be best friends again in a matter of minutes. Harry turned around to look at me.

"You coming?"

"Err, I think I'm going to head back to the castle."

"Ok, see you at dinner then." He smiled weakly and followed the others. And now I was off to go visit my man in the hospital wing.

XXX

"Do you want to blow this off and go back to the common room? It's so cold out here."

"Ron _come_ on, if we do this we can just get it over with."

"Nargles are invisible, how the bloody hell are we ever going to catch them!" Ron said, throwing his arms into the air. "Hagrid's great and all, but when are we ever going to need to learn how to catch Nargles in life." He mumbled.

Ron and I continued to stumble outside in the chilly weather to look for Nargles for our Care of Magical Creatures assignment. Ron kicked the occasional tree stump to see if there were any Nargles swarming about, while I used Luna Lovegood's advice and shook around my mistletoe branch to see if any would come to infest it.

"If you ask me, there's no such thing as Nargles."

"Ok, if I buy you 2 pumpkin pastries on our next visit to Hogsmeade, do you promise to stop complaining and help me look for these stupid things?"

"Hmm, make it 4."

"4? Merlin Ron, I'm not made out of galleons!" I said as I fished through my pockets to see how much money I even had.

"Fine, how about 3 Pumpkin Pastries and a chocolate fr-"

"SHH… Did you hear that?" I whispered suddenly right before I was going to insult him about his eating habits. There was a mysterious rustling come from a bush only a few feet away from us.

"What? I don't hear anything…" Ron looked around with a puzzled expression.

"Shh! There it is again!" I grabbed Ron's arm to keep him still. This time there was no way he couldn't have heard it. The leaves were rustling eerily and if I wasn't mistaken I could hear a low growl. Ron slowly turned to me with a look of sheer dread.

"Artemis…" he half whispered, half cried. I stayed frozen to the spot, trying to see what was in the bushes. Suddenly a black creature emerged from the leaves and took a few slow strides out into the open. It was a big, no HUGE, black dog with broading copper eyes. Its mouth was curled into a snarl that was obviously directed towards us.

"Artemis!" Ron cried again, pulling onto my sleeve. Finally my common sense kicked in, and I realized that this wasn't a friendly dog. I slowly began to back up.

"Scabbers, no!" Ron yelled out. Scabbers escaped from his jacket pocket and was clambering frantically all over Ron's shoulders and neck. "Scabbers, this is not the best time!" He tried to grab a hold of him, but the rat seemed to sense the panic we were in.

"Ron stop moving!" I said in a low voice. The dog began to circle around us very slowly. "Let's just make a run for it." Scabbers seemed to agree, and he jumped off Ron and made a run for it.

"Scabbers!" Ron ran after him.

"Are you kidding me?" I chased after him, not wanting to face the dog alone. This broke the balance between the dog and us, and with that the dog was sprinting towards us. I let out a shrill scream when I saw its teeth snapping towards me. I tripped over Merlin knows what, and fell directly onto my arm with a deafening crunch.

"RON!" I screamed out. How could he be so stupid! "Heeeelp!" The pain immediately began to settle in my forearm, and I clutched the spot tenderly. I could feel a warm liquid spreading all over my hand, which could only mean blood.

The pain quickly left my mind when I saw the dog hovering over me, its golden eyes piercing right into my own. I stared up at it, but all I could see was my short little life flashing before my eyes, so I glued my eyes shut. I was going to die right here because Ron was a stupid prat and let this dog maul me to death. But instead the dog leaned its head down towards me, let out a warm stream of breath on me, and then ran off.

I opened my eyes and saw it running off in Ron's direction, followed by Ron's screams.

"Ron…" I mumbled. I tried to get up, but I instantly fell back down. I was losing a lot of blood. My eyesight became dark as I tried to crawl towards the sound of Ron's voice. No, don't don't pass out. Help Ron….

XXX

I awoke propped up in the corner of a dark room. I looked around nervously. Where was I? I attempted to sit up but the scorching pain in my arm told me otherwise. I used my other arm to sit up and peer around the corner of the wall where I could hear low voices. I could see Hermione and Harry, their backs were to me, but why did they look so tense and beaten up. What the bloody hell was going on?

I stood up and walked into the room. At the sound of my footsteps they both whirled around to face me.

"Artemis." Hermione said almost silently. She looked at my blood stained shirt and limp arm and looked and came to stand next to me. Harry turned back around.

"What's going o-" I started to say, but Hermione silenced me with a pleading look to be quiet. I looked at her confused, then followed her and Harry's gaze to the other side of the room where 2 men were standing, almost on the verge of pulling out their wands and hexing one another. Was that…Professor Lupin? And…Sirius Black? The murdurer!

I now understood the danger we were in. My heart began to beat uncontrollably. Sirius Black was standing only feet away from me… why was I even here, all I wanted to do was catch some Nargles with Ron! Hermione must have sensed my fear and she took my hand.

"Enough talking Remus!" Sirius yelled suddenly. "Let's kill him!"

"Wait!" Professor Lupin yelled.

"I did my waiting! 12 years of it… in Azkaban!"

"Fine…" Professor Lupin turned to hand Sirius his wand. "Harry should have the right to no why though-"

"I know why." Harry said shakily. "He betrayed my parents."

"No, Harry, it wasn't him." Professor Lupin said defensively.

"Yes. Yes you did! I'm not stupid. That night you betrayed my parents. You're the reason they're dead-" Harry raised his wand and pointed it at Sirius's chest.

"No!" Sirius' eyes turned black with rage. "I tried to save your parents. In fact, I tried to find them a safe house; somewhere where James, Lily, you, my wife, and my daughter could live safely. But no." Sirius's gaze lowered, as if reminiscing on the past. Harry still looked at him with disbelief. "The only ones I could save were you, and my daughter-your godsister."

"Godsister?" Harry asked.

"That's right," Sirius fixed his eyes on Harry. "And she's right here. In this very room."

Sirius slowly turned his to look at me. I looked around, but no one else was around except for Hermione. He was talking to me.

"Didn't realize you just met your father, now did you?"

"Me? _Your _daughter?" I squeaked. What? No this couldn't be happening.

"That's right." He smiled, revealing a set of yellowing teeth.

"I…no, that's impossible, my mum would never…"

"Marry someone like me." He shook his head and took a step closer to us. Harry's wand flew back up, warning him to stay back. Sirius stayed at bay. "That was the funny thing about your mum. She was in every way like her best friend Lily. Sweet and smart, but always falling for the wrong guy." He looked back at Professor Lupin to share a nostalgic glance. "You look just like her, your eyes, and the hair…" I glanced at Harry to see his reaction. I didn't know what to do. If Sirius expected me to run into his arms and call him daddy, he was quite mistaken.

We heard footsteps coming through the hallway and we all turned our attention to the approaching person. Professor Snape emerged out of the darkness and immediately pointed his wand at Sirius.

"Vengence is sweet, isn't it?" Snape said in his usual drawn out tone. "I told Dumbledore that you are here, you know. Now all you have to do is wait for the dementor's kiss." Snape creeped slowly towards him. Sirius appeared to be unthreatened.

"Oh Severus…need I remind you of our time at Hogwarts? You wouldn't have the guts to even touch me." Snape pressed his wand to the side of Sirius's neck warningly.

"Expelliarmus!" Harry yelled, disarming Snape and shooting him back into the wall. His wand went flying, and Harry caught it with on swift motion. Hermione and I looked at Harry with disbelief.  
>"Harry!" Ron shrieked. I noticed him for the first time, sitting in the corner with his clothes tattered and bite marks and blood on his leg.<p>

"You just attacked a teacher!" Hermione squeaked. Harry ignored them and turned back to Sirius and Professor Lupin.

"Well, who _did_ betray my parents then?"

"Someone who until recently, I believed was dead-" Professor Lupin coolly.

"Peter Pettigrew!" Sirius's gaze began to scan the room. "Come out come out wherever you are!" He sang like a lunatic. Finally his eyes rested on Ron.

"There he is." Sirius pointed directly at Ron.

"Me? What? He's mental-"

"No, not you, the rat!"

"What? Scabbers had been in my family for-"

"12 years. Curiously long life for a rat, don't you think? And he's missing a toe isn't he?"

"So what! That doesn't mean anything." Ron clutched Scabbers to his chest.

"All they could find of Pettigrew was his-"

-finger!" Sirius finished for Harry. And then he transformed into a rat so everyone would think he was dead." Sirius smiled with bloodlust.

"Show me." Harry demanded. Sirius took 3 long strides over to Ron and tried to snatch Scabbers out of his hands.

"No no no! Scabbers! Don't hurt him!"

"Let him go Ron!" Harrry yelled. Hermione bent down to help calm down Ron. I knelt down beside them. Sirius finally managed to snatch him out of Ron's pleading hands, and he took him by the scruff of the hideous rat's neck over to the top of a broken down piano. Sirius pointed his wand at the rat as it tried to run away. He attempted to transfigure him before he could escape. All 3 of us kids stared intently as it went from rat to a horribly ugly little man. His thin and scraggly hair, his fingernails long and dirty, patchy facial hair, and overgrown buck teeth gave him the appearance of a rodent.

"Remus…Sirius" He tried to run towards his old pals, but they pushed him away with detest. Sirius and Lupin pointed his wand at him and Pettigrew threw up his hands like a coward.

"You sold James and Lily to Voldemort didn't you?" Lupin accused.

"I didn't mean to! You have no idea of the weapons the Dark Lord possess. What would you have done?" Pettigrew shed a few crocodile tears.

"I would have died! I would have died rather than betray my friends!"

"I bet you didn't realize that if Voldemort hadn't killed you, then we would!" The two men advanced upon Pettigrew.

"No!" Harry stopped them. We'll take him to the castle."

"Bless you boy, bless you!-" Pettigrew fell onto his hands and knees and tried to touch Harry.

"Get off! I said we'd take you to the castle. After that the dementors can have you." Harry was a boss. I almost wanted to laugh, but then I remembered the situation we were in. Sirius and Lupin shared a quick glance.

"Well then back to the castle it is then." Professor Lupin said, grabbing Pettigrew and leading him up the stairs and out of this room. Hermione and I got up slowly and followed. Harry and Sirius helped Ron limp out behind us.

"Sorry about biting you, I normally have a sweet disposition as a dog." Sirius tried to joke. I still didn't know what to think of him. Sirius Black was my Dad. The murder-no-not a murder, the best friend of Harry's parents.

"You nearly took my leg off!" Ron glowered at him. Sirius ignored this.

"How's that arm Artemis?" I turned around to look at him quickly.

"It hurts…a lot, but I should be fine."

"I really am sorry my love." I turned around to give him a half-hearted smile and to reassure him I'd be ok.

We made it up the staircase and outside into the dark night. I looked up at the building we had just gotten out of- it was the Shrieking Shack. Wait until I told Draco.

Harry and Sirius set Ron down under a nearby tree and attended to his wound. Sirius drifted off from us, and stared out at the castle. I slowly walked up behind him.

"Beautiful isn't it." He looked out of the corner of his eye at me. I looked up at him, then back to the castle. It really was beautiful. The lights were still on, and the entire castle reflected in the lake below. "I still remember my first time walking through there and meeting your mum… back when I was still a free man." He smiled a small smile. "It was love at first sight." He said quietly. "I had never loved anyone greater, that is, until you were born." He looked down at me. I smiled up at him. "Now look at you. You've grown into such a beautiful young lady." He put his hand on my cheek. I put my hand over his.

"What happened? Why couldn't you come back to us?" I asked quietly.

"I was blamed for the murders of Peter." His eyes glanced behind me to see Pettigrew struggling for freedom. "There was no way I could contact you. I didn't want the entire Wizarding World to know that your father was a 'killer'".

"LOOK!" I heard Hermione yell. We turned around to see her pointing at the full moon.

"Oh no…" Sirius whispered. I looked back and forth between everyone. What was the big deal? Sirius rushed over to Lupin's side.

"Remus! Have you taken your potion tonight?" Professor Lupin began to groan as if in pain and his wand fell out of his hands. Pettigrew took this moment to snatch it and transfigure himself back into a rat. Harry tried to disarm him, but it was too late. Pettigrew was gone.

"Run! Run!" Sirius screamed as Lupin began to lash about. Lupin's yells became louder and his body began to disfigure. What was going on!

"He's turning into a werewolf!" Hermione finally explained.

"Go! To the castle! Go now!" Sirius yelled.

I took one last look at Sirius- I mean my dad- and he looked back at me almost forlornly, and we ran back to the castle.


	11. Father Daughter Talk

**Are you guys liking the story so far? Well I hope so, but the lack of reviews tell me otherwise x) Anyways, enjoy this chapter ^.^**

As soon as word had gotten out that Sirius Black had been spotted and Ron and I were in the hospital wing after a certain 'incident', everyone in Hogwarts was in chaos. Madame Pomfrey was doing her best to shoo everyone out of the Hospital Wing, until Dumbledore himself had to come step in and threaten everyone who wasn't a close friend or relative.

I must have dozed off because the room was now empty aside from Dumbledore and Snape talking softly in the corner. Ron was fast asleep, his leg in a sling, and I was in the bed across from him, with my arm in the same state as his leg. I looked to my bedside table to see boxes and boxes of chocolate frogs stacked next to a handmade card.

_Dear Artemis, _

_ I'm writing this because I'm bored and I'm waiting for you to wake up already. Your arm looks terrible. Whoever did this to you will pay. None of the professors are saying anything about what happened to you and Weasley…_

_ Pomfrey is trying to make me leave right now, so I suppose I won't be there when you wake up. Anyways feel better Artemis and I'm hoping the chocolate frogs will make you happy._

_ - Draco_

I smiled and held the card to my chest. Dumbledore and Snape looked up, realizing I was awake. Snape cleared his throat, nodded at Dumbledore, and walked out of the Hospital Wing.

"I expect your friends are waiting for you in the Astronomy Tower?" Dumbledore said, clasping his hands.

"Sorry, what?" I asked confused. With that he left the room without another word. "Ok then…" I swung my legs over the bed slowly. I tried to put on my jacket with one arm, but ended up failing. I guess I'd have to freeze. I slipped out of the room and made my way to the Astronomy Tower, not really sure what to expect. With today's events, anything could happen.

I walked up the spiral steps of the Astronomy Tower and saw Harry and Sirius talking together. Sirius had a firm grip on Harry's shoulder and seemed to be telling him something wonderful because Harry had a grin on his face. Once he saw me, he let go of Harry and smiled at me. Harry looked over his shoulder at me and walked towards me.

"I'll see you down there." He said softly, and walked down the stairs. I walked over to the rail where Sirius was.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

"Loads." I looked down at my limp arm in its sling. There was a small silence. "Will Professor Lupin be ok?"

"Of course. He's a werewolf you see." He looked down at me and grinned. "And werewolves go through this transformation every time there's a full moon. A few days of solitude is all that it takes."

"Oh…ok. That's good then." I glanced at the moon. "And you? I mean are you free now?"

Sirius chuckled.

"I'm afraid not my dear. Nobody will believe my story. So for now I'm still a wanted man." My eyes dropped down to the ground. I grabbed his hand on an impulse. He gripped it tightly. "I'll get through though, and you know you and Harry can always visit me in the summer." I nodded, still looking down at the ground. The small amount of hope I had of having a father in my life and to live as one big happy family was crushed. My eyes began to well up and before I could stop myself.

"Artemis?" He lifted my chin so that I was looking at him. "What makes you sad?"

"I…I just- I don't know." I hiccupped and wiped my eyes. He hugged me close to him and we stood there for a few moments. "I want you t-to stay." I pouted.

"I wish I could too." He petted my hair as he spoke. "If I could make up for those 13 years, I would. It is what it is though."

"So you have to go?" I asked quietly. He bent down on one knee so that he was level with me.

"Yes, but I will always be a moment away. You can owl me anytime you know?" I nodded. "I want to hear about everything that's going on. You here?" I nodded again. "I'll be no further than your mum is."

"But I have so many questions to ask you." I pouted again.

"I've got time for one." He smiled. I exhaled slowly. I didn't know where to start. How did he meet my mum? What took him so long to get here? What happened after he tried to save Harry's parents? Did he still love my mum?

"How did you know it was me, down at the Shrieking Shack?" It kind of just escaped out of my mouth. He nodded thoughtfully.

"Well…Remus -er Professor Lupin as you may know him- told me he had a student named Artemis, the name your mum and I named our daughter. Sure, there could be other Artemis's out there, however your last name is also Trimble, your mother's dad's last name. Lupin also told me you had a rebellious attitude and that you were on Snape's bad side." We both laughed at this. "He showed me a picture of you, and I knew it had to be you because it looked almost exactly like your mum." I blinked at him, entranced at his story. "Aren't you glad you didn't inherit my genes? You'd have the face of a criminal." He laughed gently. I looked at him sadly.

"I wish I had your looks. I'd be proud to look like such a brave person." He smiled his charming smile now.

"I'm not brave." He chuckled modestly. "Well you have my personality anyways, but I don't know how well that'll get you in school."

"It's gotten me into a few sticky situations so far." I laughed thinking about First Year, and my problems with Professor Snape and Draco.

"I'll have to hear all about it in those letters." He began to stand up. "For now, I have to go if I ever want to get out of here alive." I nodded, understanding now. I hugged him tightly once more and took in his musky smell, the feel of his thin leather jacket, his exposed chest, the sound of his pulse against my ear. I had a dad now. It was the best feeling in the world, (next to kissing Draco… uhhh I mean what?) and I never wanted to let go of that feeling.

We finally parted. He let out a shrill whistle, and Buckbeak came soaring towards us.

"You are so beautiful Artemis. Stay safe. I love you." And with that, he mounted Buckbeak and took off towards the mountains. I watched him disappear off into the distance until he was nothing more than a speck.

"Bye Dad, I love you too." I whispered.

* * *

><p>"So let me get this straight… Sirius Black is your dad, and this isn't some kind of sick joke?"<p>

"Yes, and keep it down will you." I looked around to see if anyone was around. I was walking with Draco back from his Quidditch practice a few days after the incident, and I had just explained to him the _entire_ story. He'd been bugging me about it endlessly so I finally just gave in and told him.

"You know what this means don't you?" he said, not bothering to lower his voice. I looked at him sheepishly.

"What?" Would he dump me because my dad was a criminal? Oh Merlin, here it comes. He was going to break up with me and tell everyone that my dad was Sirius Black.

"The Blacks are related to the Malfoys! Technically you'd be…" he paused to count his fingers "my third cousin!" he turned to me with wide eyes. We both made faces of disgust. If it was even possible, Draco seemed to turn even whiter.

"Awkward…" I mumbled. I couldn't help but giggle though.

"What's so funny? I've been snogging my bloody cousin for months without even knowing!"

"No, I'm laughing because of all things you can say when I tell you I'm the daughter of Azkaban's Most Wanted, you're worried over the fact that we're _slightly_ related."

"It's just wrong though!"

"No one needs to know." I batted my eyelashes at him. "It could be our little secret."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He half smiled. "It's still weird though." I frowned at him.

We entered the castle, and we dropped the conversation. We got to the dungeons and waited outside while Draco changed and put away his Quidditch gear. The Slytherins that used to give me dirty looks when they saw me hanging around their territory, now got used to the idea of me being around, and simply just ignored me. Draco came back out and we walked to the Dining Hall for dinner. He played with my fingers with his own, teasing me to no end. We still weren't ready to be announced as boyfriend and girlfriend, even though it was painfully obvious.

"Are we still going to the library after dinner?"

"Of course, unless you don't want to be seen with your cousin?" I said for only him to hear.

"Oh shut it!" he scowled at me. I smiled widely back at him and we split off; him to the Slytherin table, and me to the Gryffindor table.

I took my spot between Hermione and Ginny and began filling my plate with food. A few moments later Fred, George, and Angelina Johnson sat down across from us. Fred and Angelina were arguing over something, as usual. You could cut the sexual tension between them with a butter knife. George looked at me and rolled his eyes. I laughed and gave him a look that told him I sympathized him for his 3rd wheel pain.

"How's your arm, Arty?" George asked with his big adorable goofy smile.

"It's getting better." I wiggled my fingers towards him. "I have movement in my fingers now." I smiled proudly.

"Good progress." He laughed and took a big helping of steak and kidney pie. "Oh!" he exclaimed with his fork halfway to his mouth.

"What?" I looked at him with a worried look.

"Never mind, it can wait."

"_George_." I whined "Tell me!"

"I'll tell you _later_…it has to do with the _thing_ I gave to –ahem-" his eyes darted towards Harry.

"OH! Right, right." He must be talking about the Marauders' Map. "Ok, tell me after dinner." At this point I could tell Hermione wasn't reading her book anymore, but clearly eaves dropping onto what we were talking about.

"What are you guys talking about?" Ginny asked, probably reading Hermione's mind.

"Nothing." George, Fred, and I all said at once. Angelina joined in on the suspicious looks.

"No, do tell." Angelina raised an eyebrow at Fred.

"Well it has to do with a certain someone's birthday-" George started.

"But it's a surprise!" Fred finished. Angelina's scowl smoothed into a huge smile. Her birthday indeed was coming up soon.

"Oh you two…uhh…three." She said looking at the twins, then me, with wide eyes.

"Now if you would have stayed out of our business then you wouldn't have ruined the surprise." Fred said nonchalantly. What an arse. Angelina gave him a well-deserved punch to the shoulder.

"Here we go again." George mumbled.

* * *

><p>I hung back after dinner to walk with Fred and George. Once they were done shoveling their faces with food, we got up and walked back to the Common Room.<p>

"Tonight's the night!" Fred said excitedly.

"We're going on an adventure." George smiled down at me.

" And you're our partner in crime."

"You in?" They both said. I looked at the both of them as I pretended to mull it over.

"Alright…what exactly does this adventure involve?"

"You'll see, don't fret little one." George said ruffling my hair. I pushed his hand away and muttered the password and the portrait to the common room swung open.

"Meet us in the common room at midnight, ok?" Fred said as we climbed through the portrait hole.

"Okay!"

"You better not chicken out on us."

"Don't worry, I won't." I began to climb the stairs to the Girls' Dormitory.

"Oh, and Fred?" Fred stopped just as he was about to ascend the stairs.

"Yeah?"

"You better come up with a damn good birthday party for Angelina."


End file.
